Gurgaon retd major general, landlord part of BPL list

Major General (retd) Samay Ram, a resident of Sector 5 in Gurgaon, despite being a proud owner of a 2,500-sq-yard mansion, a car, and other luxury items, falls in the category of below poverty line (BPL).

Major General (retd) Samay Ram, a resident of Sector 5 in Gurgaon, despite being a proud owner of a 2,500-sq-yard mansion, a car, and other luxury items, falls in the category of below poverty line (BPL).

Even Ram was surprised to know the fact when the Hindustan Times asked him whether he possesses the BPL card provided by the government. “How can a major general fall in the below poverty line?” he wondered.

Ram is not alone. Pradeep Kataria, a landlord who is splurging on his new house in Sector-12 on a land size of more than 1,000 square yard is also a BPL card holder.

“How can I possess a BPL card? It’s all cooked up,” Kataria said.

More than 30,000 such cards have been allegedly forged by the officers in the food and civil supply department and the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), who have been accused of siphoning off ration allocated by the government.

The Gurgaon district court on Friday sent notices to the district administration, the District Food and Suppliers Controller, and the Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) over these allegations.

The notices were issued in response to a petition filed by two residents — SS Oberoi and OP Kataria —and the councillor from ward 14, Sunita Kataria. The petition said that the ration allocated under these cards was being used by the staff of the below poverty line department under DRDA as well as the officers in the food and civil supply department.